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Today saw a lot of changes for me as far as my diet goes and it really has become a real challenge for me.

My original plan was to do not only low calorie keeping my calories between 800 and 1,000 calories per day and aiming for only 50g of carbohydrates per day, which was hard to reach with such few calories. I ate a little over 1,000 calories on day one and only managed to eat 30+ carbohydrates. I realize that if I am going to workout that I need more than that.

My doctor however wants me on a 2,000 calorie a day diet and after talking to me sister and others, I do need to do this challenge, but I need to do it in a way that is safe and healthy and in a way that I can live with when this challenge is over in 90 days. In other words, it is time for me to stop looking for quick fixes to get the weight off fast and be realistic while working on health, not my weight loss, although my weight will come off as a result of getting healthy, just not as fast. I have been told that the reason ‘regular’ healthy diets don’t work for me because I don’t eat enough and it has slowed my metabolism, so we shall see what happens. It has also been pointed out that at my body size I could be in starvation mode, which could be another reason I gained my weight back after I lost it on Medifast when I started adding food back in while transitioning into maintenance.

With that said, I have made a decision. Next month when I originally planned to go on Medifast, I will instead be going on Weight Watchers 360. I tried the original points program ten times or more I believe and each time I gained while my mom and sister lost weight eating the same food and following the same plan, so I know I was doing it right, it just wasn’t working for me. From what I have read online though people who could not get the original points program to work for them are now getting results with the Points Plus. Weight Watchers is also the only weight loss plan for long term use and success that my doctor and her office endorses and they put all their patients on it.

Sadly today I didn’t get to do my workout. I am hoping I can do it tomorrow. I had every intention to get it done today, but my digestive problems decided to start in and when that happens I can’t sit up or move without bad consequences that my mom wouldn’t have even enjoyed.

With all that said, here is what I ate today (I didn’t quite make the 2,000 calorie mark and it bothers me how much food I ate – I was annorexic for a period of time in the past, but no matter how much it keeps getting to me, I am going to keep this up and work on being healthy).

Breakfast:

1 cup Honey Nut Scooters – 110 calories

1 cup Unsweetened Pure Almond Milk – 30 calories

1 cup Coffee – 2 calories

1 tsp. Creamer – 10 calories

1 tsp. Splenda – 0 calories

Total Breakfast Calories – 152

Mid-Morning:

2 cups Coffee - 4 calories

2 tsp. Creamer - 20 calories

2 tsp. Splenda – 0 calories

Total Mid-Morning Calories – 24

Lunch:

2 slices whole wheat bread – 139 calories

2 tbsp. Light Dressing - 20 calories

6oz Chicken Breast – 250 calories

1 cup lettuce – 8 calories

1oz Red Bell Pepper Slices – 6 calories

2 Tbsp. Fat Free Salad Dressing – 50

2 cups Coffee – 4 calories

2 tsp. Creamer – 20 calories

2 tsp. Splenda – 0 calories

1 Diet Pepsi – 0 calories

Total Lunch Calories – 497

Mid-Afternoon:

1 Low-fat String Cheese Stick – 50 calories

1 cup Coffee – 2 calories

1 tsp. Creamer – 10 calories

1 tsp. Splenda – 0 calories

Total Mid-Afternoon Calories – 62

Dinner:

6oz. Steak (I was feeling hungry for some reason and I still had over a thousand calories to eat, so I decided to allow myself 2 extra ounces of steak) – 450 calories

I just saw a news report on television that really got me thinking about not only the evolution of books, but how much I have evolved as not only writer, but as a reader over the years. They were saying that Barnes & Noble may be closing down their actual pyhisical stores as more and more people turn to their devices such as Kindle and The Nook when they want to read a book.

Fourteen years ago in 1999 when I first got online I never even heard of an eBook and had no clue what it was. With my dream of being a published author and never before knowing how to make that a reality, I began to do my research. It wasn’t long before I stumbled across what was called an eBook.

This was back before there were any of the ereader devices that we have today. I remember their being a lot of buzz around the writing communities that suggested that in the next decade or so they saw physical books becoming a thing of the past and becoming exempt. They saw the eBook as taking over the book world.

I remember thinking, “Yeah! Right! I don’t think so!” My dream back then was still to have at least one book published in print that I could physically hold in my hand, so that is the direction I began to persue and I vowed never to publish one of those so called eBooks. I viewed it as “selling out.” For those of you who know me, you probably recall that as a teenager my days in not only the school library as well as the public library when my nose in book. I think a lot of you knew that was where to look if you wanted to find me. I could even be found in a local book store from time to time as well as the used book section at the Desseret Industeries in Utah where I used my allowences to buy a lot of books which grew my large book collection over the years.

I worked daily on seeing my dream become a reality. I was so excited when one of my books was finally published through a publishing company and I finally held a book in my hand that had my name on the cover. Then came the day a fellow author asked me to read their “eBook” and write a review for them. I reluncatantly agreed while still holding my ground that books were meant to be read in physical form only and that an eBook was not a real book. I didn’t even view it as real publication at the time.

I actually enjoyed reading that eBook and it wasn’t long before I was not only seeking out other eBooks to read, but I became a reviewer for both eBooks and physical paperback books. As my eBook collection grew on my PC I began to realize that my physical books, which financiallly I couldn’t afford to buy anymore was just taking up space in my bedroom and collecting dust. I made a decision that shocked a lot of people. I had my aunt and uncle help me box them all up and I donated them to a organization that sells them in a used bookstore and uses the money to help the homeless in my area.

Today I not only own and read my books on a Kindle, but my books are also published on a Kindle. I don’t view it as selling out, although I did feel a little remorse as I sat here listening to the news report that Barnes & Noble is talking aobut closing down and only selling books through their Nook device. I now realize that all that buzz around the writing communities wasn’t as far fetched as I origially viewed it to be.

I have also realized how far I have evolved as a reader and a writer, and how my views and thoughts on the subject have changed. I guess you can say I have come full circle as I sit here not only as an author who is published in print, but as an “eBook” author as well.

Today went really well. I didn’t starve at all. Strangely my sister Sandra did (she is following Weight Watchers). I made her promise to to hang in there at least another week or two and not give up. I am hoping she will adjust and hunger she is feeling now on it will go away.

I had more energy yesterday as well. I am usually so tired and dragging on that I end up falling asleep by the time I finish my lunch, if not sooner. I had so much energy that I went out into the living room after breakfast yesterday and did my Sit Tight Workout. I moved more than I have in ages. I got my heart rate up and worked up a sweat. It felt great.

Hello everyone, today is July 8, 2013 and the first day of my 90-day challenge for 2013. Today through October 5th I will be sticking 100% to my challenge and focusing on getting weight off, which means I will not be celebrating my birthday (September 16th) this at all. I am not going to lie. Recently I have put some of the weight back on that I lost, which I am going to be working hard in this 90 days to take off again plus some additional weight. The weight gain was caused by a couple of things. 1) My lymphedema – It is summer and extremely hot (some days it has been up over 100 degrees outside). Heat causes me to swell. Couple that with the fact that since my fiance moved out, my mom refuses to let me have my window open at all. She is afraid someone is going to get me, even though I have a screen on my window. I noticed that after only a day or so of the window being closed when I had gotten used to it being up day and night, 7 days a week, every single day of the year, not just the warmer months. 2) Since my fiance moved out to go help his mom, I have gotten really depressed. I miss him a lot. Even though we are practically in the same town still, I don’t really get to see him anymore, so he might as well be in another state. He moved out of here about a month or so ago. Since then I have seen him 3 times and each time it was for less than 5 minutes. He promised he would be over here on weekends, but then he doesn’t show up, so I have given up on that and sometimes I wonder if he really will be moving back in after his mother has her surgery and recovers from it like he promised me he would.

Enough with the depressing stuff though. I have decided that I am not going to dwell on my fiance being gone. I am going to focus on my health and losing as much weight as I can (my 90-day challenge) and on my writing and getting another book published and out there very soon.

This is how I am planning to do my challenge (and yes it is going to be extremely hard for me, but it wouldn’t be a challenge if it wasn’t). For my first 30-days I am going to be adding one small scoop of Garninia Cambogia Extract Powder which is 70% HCA (Hydroxy Citric Acid) and 500mg (this was on Dr. Oz – I will post the video that is on his website where he is talking about it and explaining how Garcenia Cambogia Extract works at this at the end of this blog as well as a link to where I got mine for anyone who is interested in learning more about it and maybe even trying it). They say that it also helps you when you are on a low carbohydrate diet. It is said that produces the same chemical in your brain that you produce when you eat carbohydrates as a carbohydrate addict, which am and helps in that way to reduce the craving for carbohydrates since they say that it is that chemical and those feelings a carbohydrate addict is seeking when they eat carboyhydrates. e

They say you will see a little bit of results if you don’t diet and exercise with Garcinia Cambogia Extract BUT that you will see even greater results if you diet and exercise along with it. For the diet part for the first month of my challenge I am going to be doing to be doing a low carb diet really similar to Atkins, but without the induction part of Atkins. I will be sticking to 50 carbs a day, but instead of counting just net carbs like with Atkins, I will be counting all carbs, which includes all carbs found in vegetables such as lettuce. I won’t be eating breads or sugars at all. I shouldn’t be eating breads at anytime anyway. I have all the symptoms of Celiac Disease, inclduing all tummy discomfort and pain when I eat gluten which is found in wheat (I know this isn’t a good think for someone like me who is a carb addict – I even told my doctor that and she told me I needed to overcome my carb addiction because it is killing me), but when my doctor ran all the tests it came back negative. I have been told by others who have celiac disease that sometimes it does come back negative when it is really a positive and since I have all the symptoms I should be treating myself as though I do have it and abstain from all gluten. Since the test results came back negative, my doctor tells me it is fine for me to eat gluten and I don’t need to give it up, but whenever I eat anything with gluten in it, I am doubled over in pain, break out into a sweat, and I get deathly sick. Sometimes it is so bad I start throwing up uncontrolably. I get sick and throw up every time I eat cream of wheat. I do the same thing when I eat oatmeal and have learned that oatmeal is done is a facility that produces gluten products so it has traces of gluten going through it. They have gluten free oatmeal out there, but I don’t dare try it because I have been told by people with Celiac Disease that they react off from it, I avoid it, regular cream of wheat, oatmeal, and certain soups with noodles like the plague because I know what is going to happen again if I try to eat it and it only takes one or two small spoonfulls for my body to react off from it. So with all that said, low carb for me is going to be really good for my health.

For the diet part in months one and two, I am supposed to be starting Medifast again in August. The reason I am saying supposed to is that I am planning to get a puppy the first part of August. I want to spoil her and buy her cute little dresses and all to wear. My mom is cracking the whip and saying that as long as the puppy has food, its shots, etc. that it doesn’t need cute little dresses to wear and that I AM going back on Medifast in August and she isn’t taking no for an answer. So, if I go back on the Medifast (which I more than likely will because my mom can be strict at times lol), I will be doing it and continuing the Garcenia Cambogia Extract along with it for the remainder of the challenge and then continuing with it from then on to get the weight off.

For the exercise portion, I am extremely limited on what I can do for exercise, but I am not going to let that stop me from getting some exercise in. I am going to be doing Richard Simmons Sit Tight. Even though it is sitting to exercise, I used to do this same workout in the past and I do get a really good workout from it. It gets my heart rate up and I do sweat when I do it. I can do it sitting on the edge of my bed or in the living room in my chair. For this challenge I am going to make an effort to go into the living room and sit in my chair to do it. Leaving my room is an area I need to work on. I can count on one hand since Thanksgiving day the number of trips I have made from my bed to the living room, which is how much walking I have gotten in during the past eight months, which isn’t good at all. My doctor told my mom that yes I can get up and walk and need to, so it is safe for me to walk, I have just been lazy and need to push myself harder than I have been. I know it is going to kill my knees in the beginning, but I have my walker and my knees will eventually get stronger so that they don’t hurt anymore when I walk.

I will leave you all with those links now and go get ready to take my first dose of the Garcinia Cambogia Extract, wait 30 minutes, eat my breakfast and drink my first cup of coffee of the day, do my Sit Tight Workout and then start working on my Manuscript for my newest book. I am just working on edits for it now and hoping to have it released by the end of this week. I will post another blog at the end of day and give you all a recap on how day one goes.

P.S. My sister Sandra is going to be doing this 90-day challenge with me. The only difference is she will be following Weight Watchers with the Garcinia Cambogia Extract Powder – I will let you all know about her progress as well.

Dr. Oz talking about Garcinia Cambogia Extract (keep in mind that even though he says without diet and exercise, for best results you still need to diet and exercise to see any real results):

Our Garcinia Cambogia Extract Powder is a 70% extract meaning each serving contains a 70% concentration of the HCA (Hydroxycitric acid).
Garcinia cambogia, a fruit grown in Southern India, works on two levels to promote healthy weight loss. A compound called Hydroxycitric acid (HCA) in garcinia cambogia is effective at blocking the conversion of sugars and starches into fats thereby inhibiting fat storage. HCA also works to suppress appetite by raising the levels of certain brain chemicals such as serotonin.
Our Garcinia Cambogia Powder comes from the forests of Southern India and has been used for thousands of years in the Orient as a dietary supplement. This superfruit is now being used in the West as a new revolutionary way to fight hunger, promote weight loss through appetite control and naturally boost energy levels.
Garcinia Cambogia works by raising the natural serotonin levels of your brain, the natural chemical in our bodies that regulates mood. When a person eats carbohydrates, amino acids are pulled out of your blood to break down the sugar. During this process, room is created in the brain for chemicals used to create neurotransmitters like serotonin. In essence, the brain eventually knows that eating carbohydrates will stimulate these neurotransmitters and provide a feeling of happiness for the moment. This can often lead to the binge eating of carbohydrates. Garcinia Cambogia naturally enhances serotonin without the need of eating carbohydrates allowing you to feel happy and satisfied.
Garcinia Cambogia also helps to boost energy levels by reducing the body’s ability to make and store new fat so that previously stored fat is burned off instead and at the same time lowering cholesterol and triglycerides. In the same way, Garcinia Cambogia inhibits the effects of the liver enzyme ATP Cytrate Lyase which is responsible for turning carbohydrates into stored fat, therefore burning off carbohydrates quickly. Calories are then converted into glycogen, the body’s natural energy source. People taking Garcinia Cambogia find that they no longer crave fattening foods and enjoy a healthier, nutritious low carb diet. With no known side effects by using Garcinia Cambogia, people no longer need to use stimulants such as caffeine or xenadrine which can cause anxiety, nervousness or insomnia to battle the sluggish feeling commonly associated with a low carb diet. Because of the natural increase of serotonin levels, Garcinia Cambogia has been known to help people succeed in an combined weight loss and exercise program because they naturally feel happy and energetic!
Garcinia Cambogia also has other amazing qualities and is utilized as an anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial and anti-viral agent. This can help to combat the illnesses sometimes associated with a low carb diet. It is also known to be useful in helping diabetics and those with liver disorders due to its cleansing and sugar balancing attributes.Other benefits of our All Natural Garcinia Cambogia Extract Powder include:
● Appetite control ● Weight reduction ● Reducing the body’s ability to store fat ● Supporting healthy joints & connective tissue ● Creates a process in the body called thermogenesis ● Alleviating constipation ● Supporting healthy liver function ● Lowering cholesterol & triglycerides